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David A. Grimes, MD; Scot A. LeBolt
Center for Health Promotion and Education

Willard Cates, Jr, MD, MPH
Center for Prevention Services Centers for Disease Control Atlanta

JAMA. 1983;250(3):362.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

In Reply.—

The Lanskas and Dr Rimm suggest that because cesarean delivery is more hazardous for women than vaginal delivery,¹ "maternal mortality caused by abortion should be compared with both vaginal delivery and cesarean delivery separately." Precise national data required to calculate these rates are unavailable; nevertheless, existing data² do not support the hypothesis that 90% of all maternal deaths are related to cesarean delivery.

Moreover, the suggested comparison would not be clinically useful. Approximately 16%³ of women in the United States who give birth do so by cesarean delivery; a pregnant woman choosing between abortion and childbirth usually cannot predict which type of delivery she will have. A woman who chooses to carry her pregnancy to delivery is subject to the risks inherent in the process, regardless of their source. Hence, the appropriate comparison is between the mortality rate associated with all methods of abortion and . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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